While there could always be more, there’s no question that with respect to Metroidvanias the Switch is set up pretty nicely. What’s great is that, for the most part, they’ve also been quite varied in terms of how they’ve been set up so, there’s more than enough room for people with every taste to enjoy the genre. To its credit, Jumper Jon does at least check off quite a few boxes in terms of it feeling unique, even in this varied group. That said, what helps to distinguish it from its brethren doesn’t necessarily make it a home run either.

There’s no doubt that the first thing you’ll notice is the game’s pretty distinctive look. Whether that will be a good or bad thing will be in the eye of the beholder though, with some people I’m sure enjoying its cartoony look, and others probably thinking it’s a bit too reminiscent of the way Flash games looked back in the day. Pretty quickly on the heels of getting started, the game’s other big differentiator rears its head as well though, and that’s the option to play it normally or to tackle its intended play style by opting to turn on a 30 second timer that will then somewhat dominate your focus.

The way it works is that you’ll only have 30 seconds until you automatically die, with your salvation coming in the form of golden feathers you’ll find hidden all around the map. To its credit, this does give the game more urgency and challenge than it would without it, but it can make the challenges feel uneven from place to place, and it does often feel like the time limit discourages exploration and discovery unless you simply don’t mind being brought back to where you picked the last one up. The thing is, playing without the time limit also sort of reveals what’s otherwise more humdrum general level design, so in some ways it feels necessary.

Throw in the fact that using the in-game menu is a bit of a confusing mess, making it harder to access your map and make upgrade choices, and the fact that I had a few crashes, and it's absolutely a mixed bag overall. If you’re really thirsting for something different, and that has an element of challenge that gives gameplay a different vibe, this does serve that up. That said, if you’re simply looking for the best the genre has to offer on the system, this would be a fair way down the list.